A Fugitive from the Past

Kiga kaikyô

Synopsis

Another bona fide masterpiece by Uchida in grainy black & white Cinemascope. Modernist detective epic about a robbery with murder during a destructive typhoon in 1947, and how the culprits are confronted with their past ten years later. Also a social investigation into post-war Japan.

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[More like 4.5] I got to know this movie thanks to a list here on MUBI. I was mostly impressed by two key elements: how keen and innovative the technique is (e.g. the phase-contrast scenes are used well), and how compelling a 3h-long plot could be. It must have been thanks to elaborate character building. There are minor plot holes, but I believe they are more due to realism for the 1965's audience, than else.